Top 10 UFC KOs of all time including terrifying Francis Ngannou uppercut and Max Holloway last second buzzer-beater
10/14/2024 11:07 AM
Throughout the storied history of the UFC, there have been a vast variety of terrifying KOs including some of the biggest stars of the sport.
UFC fans have been beneficiaries of some incredible moments throughout the history of the promotion including some star-making knockouts.
From spinning wheel-kicks from Edson Barboza to horrifying uppercuts from Francis Ngannou, there are many KOs that can be considered the ‘greatest ever’ by the fans.
Bloody Elbow has put together a list of the 10 greatest UFC KOs ever, taking into consideration the magnitude of the moment and the finishing blow itself.
10. Alistair Overeem vs Francis Ngannou – UFC 218
Fittingly, Francis Ngannou is scheduled to make his return to MMA this coming Saturday at PFL Super Fights ‘Battle of the Giants’ where he will take on Renan Ferreira for the Super Fight heavyweight title, making his promotional debut.
Rewinding to UFC 218 in 2017, Ngannou clashed with a fellow feared heavyweight, Alistair Overeem in the co-main event.
‘The Predator’s’ devastating power was showcased in the first round when he landed a hellacious uppercut on the chin of the Dutchman knocking him out clean in what is one of the most viral images in UFC history.
9. Korean Zombie vs Yair Rodriguez – UFC Fight Night 139
Yair Rodriguez‘s KO over ‘The Korean Zombie’ in Colorado in 2018 will go down as one of the most bizarre finishes of all time with fans initially thinking it was a lucky strike.
The event already had an air of significance surrounding it as the UFC was celebrating its 25th anniversary and the promotion used its throwback logo throwback theme.
In the main event, the Mexican striker landed one of the most unique elbows in MMA history within the final seconds of the fight, knocking Chan Sung Jung out cold.
8. Kamaru Usman vs Leon Edwards III – UFC 278
At UFC 278 in Salt Lake City, Leon Edwards began a trend of terrifying head-kick KOs when he starched Kamaru Usman in the final moments of their huge welterweight title fight.
With the win, ‘Rocky’ Edwards became only the second-ever UFC champion from the UK, joining pioneer Michael Bisping in helping the growth of the sport on that side of the pond.
The KO will go down as one of the greatest of all time because of the fact the Brit was dominated for over four rounds and snatched the win from the jaws of defeat in the dying embers.
7. Anderson Silva vs Vitor Belfort – UFC 126
Regarded as one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all time, Anderson Silva‘s UFC career was filled with plenty of star-making moments, however, his KO over Vitor Belfort at UFC 126 stands out as the best.
Heading into the fight, Belfort was largely considered one of Silva’s toughest tests to date, but in the first round ‘The Spider’ landed the first ever front kick KO in the promotion’s history, retaining his middleweight title.
6. Max Holloway vs Justin Gaethje – UFC 300
Recency bias may come into this pick, however, Max Holloway‘s last-second KO over Justin Gaethje at UFC 300 will be played on repeat for decades to come.
With UFC 300 being such a monumental event, this bout was highlighted as ‘The People’s Main Event’ as soon as it was announced with both fighters being big fan favorites.
After dominating the former interim lightweight champion for five rounds, ‘Blessed’ Holloway landed one of the craziest KOs ever in the final second, winning the BMF title.
What makes this moment even more impressive is the fact that Holloway didn’t need to initiate a brawl in the final moments, but because of the BMF blood running through his veins, he did anyway.
5. Edson Barboza vs Terry Etim – UFC 142
Edson Barboza’s highlight reel will go down as one of the most impressive for any fighter in UFC history when he decides to hang up his gloves.
Marking the beginning of his epic highlight reel was a ferocious spinning wheel kick KO against Terry Etim at UFC 142, which left UFC fans speechless.
Not only was the kick landed with incredible precision, but it was utterly unavoidable because of the speed the Brazilian landed it.
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4. Jorge Masvidal vs Ben Askren – UFC 239
Potentially coming too far down the list is Jorge Masvidal’s picture-perfect flying knee KO over Ben Askren at UFC 239, resulting in probably the most replayed UFC KO of all time.
After landing the picture-perfect running flying knee within the first five seconds of their fight, ‘Gamebred’ Masvidal went on to blossom into one of the UFC’s biggest cash cows, entirely changing the trajectory of his career.
3. Impa Kasanganay vs Joaquin Buckley – UFC Fight Night 179
At UFC Fight Night 179 during the COVID-19 pandemic, Joaquin Buckley landed the most unique KO in UFC history when he put Impa Kasanganay to sleep with a jumping spinning back kick after Kasanganay caught his body kick attempt.
Although in terms of uniqueness and technique, this KO probably tops the list, it was a fight between at the time, two unranked fighters on the undercard of a fight night, with the significance of the event bringing it lower down the list.
2. Ronda Rousey vs Holly Holm – UFC 193
This KO comes in second on the list because of the sheer significance of the moment as well as the KO itself being utterly sensational.
At UFC 193 in 2015, over 56,000 fans were in attendance hoping to witness the UFC’s biggest star at the time, Ronda Rousey pick up another dominant win.
‘Rowdy’ Ronda’s star power was growing day by day and she was the sole reason why the UFC implemented a female division.
Despite all of that, in the second round of her fight against striker, Holly Holm, ‘the Preachers Daughter’ pulled off one of the biggest upset wins in UFC history with a devastating head kick KO.
1. Jose Aldo vs Conor McGregor – UFC 194
Who else could top the list? In December 2015, Conor McGregor catapulted himself into superstardom when he KO’d Jose Aldo in the opening 13 seconds of their title unification bout at UFC 194.
Not only will this go down as the greatest KO ever but it will go down as one of the biggest rivalries in UFC history because of the lead-up and the hatred between both fighters.
This one ranks top because of what ‘The Notorious’ went on to accomplish off the back of this historical moment.
